


For Us

by Leaves_Crown



Series: The Bond Between Us [2]
Category: Tennis no Oujisama | Prince of Tennis
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-07
Updated: 2015-10-07
Packaged: 2018-04-25 08:15:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,841
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4953037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Leaves_Crown/pseuds/Leaves_Crown
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Niou and Yagyuu's relationship has grown ever closer, but gets challenged when Niou's violent cousin targets them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	For Us

“There’s going to be a sequel next year,” Marui said happily.

“Another one?” Yagyuu asked, swinging his bag over his shoulder. He was quite ready to go home.

“Yeah! Will try to get tickets for the first showing.” Marui opened his bag of gummy dinosaurs. “Want one?”

“I’m fine, thank you.”

Just as the redhead wanted to start stuffing himself, his eyes fell on the young man sitting at the top of the school fence. “Niou’s waiting for you?”

A small smile formed on Yagyuu’s face. His sister had promised to ‘cook’ for them, which basically meant baking cookies. Niou was her great favourite, and both Yagyuu siblings were looking forward to spending some time with him tonight.

Just as Yagyuu lifted his hand in greeting, he got a clearer view of the figure on the fence and froze.

Marui stopped too, turning back for him. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

“That’s not…Niou.”

Marui rolled his eyes. “You’re Niou today then?”

“No. I am Yagyuu Hiroshi. That is neither one of us!”

The boy on top of the fence had dressed up in a Rikkai uniform. He must have put a wig on too. But it wasn’t just that. His facial features were similar to Niou’s as well. The stranger had already spotted them, and his eyes narrowed when he saw Yagyuu’s reaction.

“I have to find Niou.” He ran back up the path, leaving a surprised Marui behind.

He ran into him right as he entered the school again.

Niou smiled. “Ready for tonight?”

“Yes, but …”

Knowing him well, Niou’s face turned to worry. “What’s wrong?”

“There’s someone on the fence of the school. He looks exactly like you. Just…only…”

“Only?”

Yagyuu shrugged. “He gave me an unpleasant feeling.”

“He must be my cousin.”

“Oh! I do apologize.”

“No need.” Niou averted his eyes. “I do not think I can make it tonight.”

“My sister has prepared…”

“Yes, I know!”

Yagyuu adjusted his glasses “No need to act so disgruntled to me. You are making the last minute cancelation.”

“Yeah, I always am in the wrong, aren’t I?” Niou threw him a glare and then rushed off, leaving Yagyuu in the hallway.

Usually, when Niou did something that annoyed him, Yagyuu would turn quiet. In response, Niou would tease him just as long with kisses and tender jokes until Yagyuu would ‘forgive’ him.

He didn’t like that his reaction was so different. The unpleasant feeling Yagyuu had gotten from the guy on the fence intensified.

At home, he excused Niou with his sister and parents by saying he had to help out with family issues and so avoided a lie.

Though he tried to cheer up his disappointed sister by helping her bake, his mind drifted off to Niou. It bothered him that he had not known about this cousin of his. Niou loved acting secretive, but usually it was just to get a rise out of people. Yagyuu had not thought this had extended to him any more.

His worries grew further when Niou was not at school the next day. He almost texted him when he found out at lunch, but his rudeness was not forgotten, so Yagyuu put his phone back before he had finished a message.

Yukimura came to sit with him as he stared at his soup.

“Everything all right?”

He nodded. “Yes, thank you.”

“Marui said there was another Niou here yesterday.” Yukimura took a small sip of his tea. “Anything I should know about?”

“Not as far as I’m aware.”

“Sanada does not know he was sitting on the school fence.” Yukimura smiled at him. “Let’s keep it that way, shall we?”

“That sounds best, yes.”

“Would you mind studying together this evening? I know it’s Friday, but I take part in an English speech contest tomorrow and would like to be prepared.”

“Of course. Shall we go to your house?”

“Great, thanks!”

At eight o’clock, the two of them sat in Yukimura’s beautiful garden, enjoying the warm summer evening.

His phone beeped as Yagyuu corrected one sentence, but he ignored it until Yukimura went back inside to get them a snack.

_Hey Hiroshi, you’re not at home?”_

He typed a short reply. _That is correct._

Niou replied promptly. _Can we go somewhere and talk?_

_I am not much inclined to talk to you tonight._

“Niou?” Yukimura asked, as Yagyuu glanced up from his phone.

“Yes,” he said simply. He was about to put his phone away, when another message came.

_I’ll see you tomorrow morning then._

“He has changed a little, don’t you think?”

Yagyuu’s eyes flashed up.

“For the better, I mean,” Yukimura said, watching him. “Ever since you two became…closer.”

“You know about it?” Yagyuu asked quietly.

“Only Yanagi and I do. Don’t worry. We speak of it to nobody.”

Yagyuu looked at his hands. “You do not think it’s weird?”

“No, do you?”

“I do not think my family would approve.”

Yukimura gave him one of his gentle smiles. “That was not what I asked.”

“I do not know if it is weird. But it feels natural. For a long time…I’ve…”

“You do not have to explain yourself to me. I am glad for the both of you.”

This was the first time he had discussed his relationship with anyone other than Niou, and he felt a sense of relief that he was not being condemned for it. “Thank you.”

“For what? You’re the one helping me with my English.”

Talking to Yukimura had lessened his annoyance with his boyfriend a little, so when Niou stood at his front door the next morning, he held it open for him.

“Not pissed off any more?” Niou asked, as he took off his shoes.

“That depends on your explanation.”

They went upstairs, to Yagyuu’s room. Niou knew him well enough to not touch him before things were talked through. Yagyuu let him sit on his bed, but kept his distance and sat down on the chair himself.

“I’ve always known your family is out of the ordinary, but I’m beginning to think there might be more to it than I thought,” he started.

His eyes narrowed when Niou sighed. He almost never did that.

“Tell me.”

Niou met his eyes, and Yagyuu could see he was hesitating. He did not take it as an insult, since he realized it might be something Niou had been conditioned to keep secret.

“You know the house I live in?”

“Yes.”

“It is not my real house. Or at least not the most important one. We have a much larger house near Mihama.”

“You do? I thought…”

“We were a normal middle class family? No, that we definitely are not.”

Astonished, Yagyuu stared at his boyfriend. “So how did you become… rich?”

“It is something from several generations. And not all of it begotten in legal ways.”

Yagyuu tensed up. “What do you mean?”

“My family first made a name for itself during the Meiji restoration, in the nineteenth century. My ancestors were powerful business people, that intermarried with ever more influential families in Kyoto. They had a violent streak as well, and more than one competing sibling has simply disappeared.”

“It’s still like that?” Yagyuu asked, worried for Niou.

“I do not know. My mother is the youngest child of the current head of the family. She’s not really involved in the business.”

“So, she chose to marry a person from a normal family and make a life of her own?”

“Well, perhaps no ‘normal. My father’s older brother runs two casinos in Osaka and has some connections with gangsters , but they’re not nearly...” 

“Good heavens!”

Niou looked away. “You’re shocked.”

“I am.”

Yagyuu, knowing Niou so well, saw that he struggled for words. Suddenly, he realized it. Niou was afraid he would lose him.

He stood up and sat down next to his boyfriend.

Weary, Niou met his gaze, so Yagyuu leaned closer. “I’m shocked that you had to grow up like this. It does not change my desire to be in a relationship with you.”

“No?”

Yagyuu shook his head.

“Good.” Niou put his arm around him.

Taking his other hand, Yagyuu held it, wanting to reinforce their connection. “Tell me more. What does your cousin want?”

“My grandmother wants me to learn the business as well. She thinks I’d be a better at it than he would be.”

“He’s trying to intimidate you?”

“He’s always been a nuisance, but he’s been running around with shady types outside the family the last few months and getting worse. That’s why I rushed away from you on Thursday. I did not want him to see us together.”

“You are worried he’d hurt me?” Yagyuu asked.

“I don’t think so. But if you ever see him near, don’t show any affection for me.”

“I won’t. I never do, in public.”

“Tell me about it,” Niou teased.

“You would wish us to walk around hand in hand in public?” Yagyuu asked.

“If not for my stupid cousin, why not?”

Yagyuu said nothing.

Niou raised an eyebrow. “You really think nobody has realized by now?”

“Yukimura told me he knows.”

“Is he the only one?”

“Yanagi, as well.”

“What did he say?”

“They are fine with it. But what do you think Sanada would say? Or Kirihara?”

“Sanada thinks he’s a samurai. They often got it on with other men.”

“Well...”

“And who cares about Kirihara? He’s a lunatic.”

“But there might be others who…”

Niou put his finger on Yagyuu’s lips.

“I don’t want to talk about other people anymore.” He leaned closer to Yagyuu. “It’s you I want.”

This time Niou initiated the kiss. His tongue slipping past Yagyuu’s lips, he closed his eyes and embraced him. His body held a tension that Yagyuu tried to soothe with his hands.

When Niou broke the kiss, his heart was already racing.

“I’m glad you don’t hold it against me.”

“Of course not.” Yagyuu pulled him closer again, wanting more.

Niou’s hand landed on his hip, and caressed the inside of it. The doorbell rang downstairs, but Yagyuu ignored it. Those warm fingers touching him increased his desire. They usually made love on Thursday evening, when Yagyuu’s parents were gone, or in Niou’s house.

“Brother!”

Yagyuu closed his eyes. Niou and he moved away from each other, trying to appear as nothing but two friends having a chat. His sister opened the door and stared at Niou in shock.

Quickly, Yagyuu looked him over, trying to determine what had caused this reaction.

“How… is this one of your magician tricks?” she asked.

“Magician tricks?” But then Niou caught on faster than Yagyuu. “Who rang the doorbell just now?”

She laughed. “You did! Did you climb through the window?”

“Perhaps.” He gave her a smile that did not reach his eyes and exchanged a worried glance with Yagyuu. “Let me go downstairs for a moment, okay?”

“Is everything all right with your family now?” she asked, as Niou veered up.

“Not yet, but it will be.”


End file.
